THE Guyana Police Force (GPF) is in receipt of tests for several DNA samples which were sent to Brazil during investigations into several murders, many of which were classified as high-profile.
Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum, on Friday, confirmed to this publication that the force recently received the samples which are approximately eight in number.He said police investigators are presently documenting the findings of the tests.
The results, he said, are written in a foreign language and the Criminal Investigation Department of the Guyana Police Force is presently in contact with a Federal Liaison Officer from Brazil, who is based in Guyana and he is in contact with the authorities in that country.

Samples returned included that of former police detective Igris Bobb-Blackman, who at the time was attached to the Brickdam Police Station. Blackman’s body was pulled from a septic tank in January 2011 at Parfait Harmonie on the West Bank of Demerara, a day after he went missing. The police had arrested his ex-wife in that matter and the woman was freed of the murder charge in 2014.

The police also received the results for DNA samples which were also sent as part of the investigations into the murder of Sirmattie Ramnaress, a businesswoman and reputed wife of now embattled Police Sergeant Colin Bailey. The police had taken samples from Bailey and also took into their possession bottles which were at the scene and on a table when they showed up to investigate the murder.
One of the bottles which was said to have been still cold, suggested that it was not long before ranks showed up at the scene that it had been taken from the refrigerator. The crime scene investigators have been working on the theory that the crime scene of the ransacked house and what appeared to be forced entry had been staged.
Also returned were samples taken from a murder scene at the K&VC Hotel. There have been several incidents at the chain of K&VC Hotels and this publication was unable to immediately pinpoint which of the murders the police were able to receive samples for from Brazil.
Samples taken in a triple murder which had occurred at Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo, in December, 2014, were also returned. A father and son had been arrested and charged for the murder of a woman, her daughter and grand-daughter, who were all chopped to death.
In addition to those samples, there have been other samples returned which included ones that were taken from a murder scene in Berbice, Region 6.
On Friday, Commissioner of Police Seelall Persaud also confirmed that samples did return from Brazil, but was quick to point out that there were still several other samples to be returned. It was against that backdrop that he informed media operatives that the Force decided to send samples to Trinidad for testing.

Presently, Guyana and Brazil have an agreement with respect to DNA testing and Commissioner Persaud made it clear that the agreement is still alive and well and nothing has changed.

He was however, clear in pointing out that the reason they have decided to send samples to Trinidad, despite the standing agreement with Brazil, is the fact that the latter has been having issues with its testing lab and that it has been causing local investigators to move ahead with building their cases. (Leroy Smith)